The Back Room KL is proud to present Fish in Pure Water 水至清则无鱼, a selection of 20 paintings by Liew Kwai Fei, emerging from the artist’s lifelong investigations and experimentations in the art of painting.
In this series, Liew tests the conventions of his own artistic practice and also the conventions of national painting history in order to unlock a new visual language in his poetry of painting. “水至清则无鱼” translates as “water that is too clear has few fish”, a caution against strictness and purity that best sums up Fei’s own intellectual yet joking approach to painting and his fusion of both Eastern and Western art historical influences.
Despite Liew’s serious study, the paintings are playful at heart. In contrast to the structured and minimalist paintings of his recent past, Fish in Pure Water 水至清则无鱼 is more open and free-spirited, embracing viewers’ interpretations over artistic intention.
They are accompanied with an experimental text of a fictional censorship debate (Socratic discourse updated for the Zoom generation) on the subject of Liew’s works, set in a speculative future, written by Ellen Lee and inspired by conversations with Liew.
About the Artist
Liew Kwai Fei explores high and low culture alongside issues associated with the legacy of colonialism such as class, nationalism, and race through the language of painting. Spanning over a decade, his practice is contextually specific to the artistic and political landscapes of the time, both locally and globally. The idiosyncrasy and hybridity of Liew’s style are clearly manifested in his modular paintings and installation art.
Liew has had nine solo exhibitions to date and has participated in numerous group exhibitions in Malaysia and Singapore. His work has also been collected by institutions such as the National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur and the Singapore Art Museum.
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About the Writer
Ellen Lee graduated with a degree in Comparative Literature from the University of Kent, England, in 2017. KL-born and based, she currently works in the local visual arts sector as a project manager and research assistant while also pursuing writing on a freelance basis.